QB Brown Takes Charge

ITHACA, N.Y.--The big questions that hung unresolved before gametime here Saturday dealt with the floundering state of Joe Restic's offense--would anyone emerge solidly behind the helm of Restic's multiflex, and could the impotent Crimson running attack again some punch?

The answers were spelled out clearly and decisively in the course of the Schoellkopf Field grid battle, with junior quarterback Larry Brown writing the script. Coolly wheeling and dealing behind center, the 6'-3'', 190-pound Brown let it be known that the quarterbacking slot was in good hands, and that the running game was fan from dead.

Brown, who does a highly competent job chucking another kind of ball on the baseball diamond in the spring, gunned for 133 yards through the gusting Ithaca winds, clicking on 10 of 17 attempts.

Most important, Brown's unflinching handling of the Crimson offensive machine set to rest most of the confusion about the Harvard quarterback situation, which had been in a state of flux since Tim Davenport's neck injury against Columbia three weeks ago.

Brown ran the show with aplomb, whether establishing a much needed ground game in the first half (the running attack suddenly healthy after sputtering in the last two outings, picked up 135 yards), or holding the surging Big Red a bay with a couple of momentum-breaking second-half drives.

For Brown, who handled the ball only rarely for the freshman squad two years ago, he spotlight role is a new one. He reported to camp in late August far down on the depth chart, but when Davenport had to bow out, Brown got the nod.

The signal caller performed respectably against UMass and Colgate, but those contests were merely preludes to Saturday's solid showing.

Against Cornell, the QB went directly at the problem. "We had to establish a ground game," said Brown, "and then set up some play-action passing."

And he did just that, driving the Crimson downfield via the turf on its second possession of the game, before lofting a 20-yard TD aerial to Jim Curry on a play-action maneuver. Later in he quarter, Brown asserted Harvard's dominance again, leading a touch down drive that ended with a flip to Scott Coolidge.

"Personally, there's still a lot for me to learn," Brown said after the game, "but I'm happy with the way things have developed."

And so, for the most part, are the Crimson fans. TEAM  OVERALL  IVY Dartmouth  4-0  2-0 Harvard  2-2  2-0 Penn  2-2  2-1 Yale  2-2  1-1 Columbia  2-2  1-2 Princeton  1-3  1-2 Brown  2-2  1-2 Cornell  0-4  0-2

SATURDAY'S RESULTS

Harvard 17, Cornell 7

Dartmouth 3, Yale 0

Princeton 28, Columbia 7

Penn 14, Brown 7

SATURDAY'S RESULTS

Harvard 17, Cornell 7

Dartmouth 3, Yale 0

Princeton 28, Columbia 7

Penn 14, Brown 7